Afternoon everyone How goes?
That good, eh? I've just trooped across the way from my hotel, down the expressway, over the skinny footbridge, in between the crowd surrounding the ticket touts, through the security check, around the Olympic park, on past the ticket check, into the media area and down to a seat near the front of the lower tier, about three-quarters of the way up the 100m track and 10 metres back from the barriers.
Walking through the Olympic park, which I'm sure you've seen in the background of countless sideways glances at life around Beijing by Adrian Chiles on the BBC, is akin to listening Kraftwerk cover Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds. Anyway, how is the Beeb's coverage back home? I'm not used to watching the Olympics without Inverdale, Barker and Brendon Foster guiding me through it. Any highlights? One thing I would like to have seen would have been Michael Johnson's post race commentary on Usain Bolt's two world records. I have just caught a quick dose of Jon Edwards, who is whispering excitedly to a colleague of his about ten yards behind me. Edwards' view: "I mean, we're third in the medal table, that never happens!"
It's going to be a fantastic night, starting in ten minutes time with the three heats PHILLIPS of the Women's 1500m IDOWU and then moving on to the Women's 200m Final at 12.30pm BST. , A huge PHILLIPS head-to-head between IDOWU the USA and Jamaica, then we've the three 800m semi-finals, the first two heats of both PHILLIPS the Women's and the IDOWU Men's 4x100m, then, at 2.20pm BST, and the Men's 400m final with Jeremy Wariner looking to beat Micheal Johnson's other unbeatable PHILLIPS record, and then there's the Men's IDOWU 110m hurdles final at 2.40pm. Oh yes, and there's Britain's Goldie Sayers in the Women's Javelin from 12.20pm and somebody called Phillips Idowu in the Men's triple jump final from 1.25pm Apparently he has quite a good chance of a medal.
7.05pm and it's started. Bahrain's Maryam Jamal winning the first 1500m heat in 4.05.14. The top three in each heat are going through to the final, along with the three fastest qualifiers. GB's Susan Scott (yes, I know it didn't say that last time you looked...) goes in the next race, and Lisa Dobriskey in the third. Neither are among the three fastest this season in their races, so it may be tight.
AndyinBrum: the Chinese crowd in the stadium are all, I'd say, middle class citizens. The tickets are certainly too expensive for a lot of Beijingers.
7.10pm Anyone care to bet as to how many medals Britain will, or may, win tonight and what colour? Here's your cast list: Goldie Sayers, Idowu and Larry Achike, Martyn Rooney. I'm already more drinks than I'd care to consume in hock to my colleague Mike Adamson, he having had the good reasoning to disagree with me when I said that Phelps wouldn't beat Spitz's record and then that Bolt wouldn't beat Johnson's. Susan Scott has been badly run out of this I'm afraid, she was up with the leaders for a couple of laps, and... oh hang on ... Scott kicks strongly in the home straight and finishes fourth in 4.14.65. I'm not sure that'll be enough to get her through.
The javelin throwers are being introduced by the ballpark style voice over guy. Just wait for hi to struggle with Onochie 'Larry' Achike's name later on. Seriously, it's great, when he has to say an Arabic name they over-dub him a different voice so they get the pronounciation right. Goldie Sayers, red in the face, gives a friendly wave. There's a Chinese thrower, Zhang Li, in the field, so there's a tremendous roar for her. And I've just found out that my, ah, hunch, was correct. The top six finishers in the first 1500m heat were all quicker than Susan Scott, so she's out.
7.25pm I've somehow ended up sitting in the L'Equipe tribune. I'm surrounded by people in horn-rimmed glasses and scarves. Again, a brilliant finish from Lisa Dobriskey, sprinting home at a furious lick and overtaking the USA's Shannon Rowbury to finish third and qualify automatically for the final. In fact she's the third fastest qualifier, which bodes well.
7.30PM. Goldie Sayers steps to the end of the javelin runway, a little put out perhaps that already two women have thrown further than her own PB. Her first effort isn't too shabby though, going out to 65m. Right, no dawdling, it's time for the women's 200m final. What a race this is. Jamaica are going for a clean sweep of all the sprint golds, and even a repeat of their 1-2-3 in the women's 100m. In the way of Veronica Campbell-Brown (the Olympic champion), Kerron Stewart and Sherone Simpson are the trio of Americans, including Olympic silver medallist Allyson Felix, as well as Muna Lee and Marshevet Hooker.
Well Campbell-Brown is on a lap of honour, trailed home by Felix and Kerron Stewart. She led throughout, and came home in a PB of 21.74 - the fastest time in a decade. Commanding stuff, and with Jamaica winning bronze as well that's, what? seven sprint medals from 12 for them?
7.40pm Turns out Sayers' first round throw was an new British record at 65.75m, impressive stuff. Anyway, we've a little breather while Usain Bolt collects his medal for last night. Please stand for the national anthem. Yes, you.
7.43pm Here goes Goldie again, currently in fourth place. Oh God. They're playing Happy Birthday on the tannoy to Usain Bolt, Sayers shuts her eyes and takes her throw anyway, and the result is 59m-odd. Time for an apology: I seem to be doing things backwards, but it's too late to turn this thing around now, so we'll have to go top-to-bottom rather than the bottom-to-top you've come to know and be indifferent to. Mmm, it's starting to rain. This could be about to get messy. OK, messier.
7.50pm And now the first 800m semi, which contains both Yuriy Borzakovskiy and Wilfred Bungei. I just can't see those names without hearing Brendan Foster's gruff voice pronounce them. Should be good anyway. Bungei leads the first lap in 54.4, and Borzakovskiy follows on his shoulder. Bungei finishes first, with Cuba's Lopez Yeiner second. Borzakovskiy will have to wait and see if he makes the two fastest losers. Oh yup, it's really raining now. The L'Equipe guys tug a plastic cover up over our desks, meaning I'm now kind of inside a tent.
8pm and Sayers, still smiling, urges the crowd to clap her on and throws out to 62.92m. She's still fourth. One thing about the efficiency of the staff at these Games - it means you are continually bombarded with A4 print-outs detailing thousands of facts you little or no use for. I've got a small tree's worth around me at the moment. The second 800 semi is underway, with Pechana of Brazil leading them through, but being overtaken by a Kenya's Alfred Yego and the Sudan's Ismail Ismail. Great name.
Mouth: who is the greatest stylist? I'd reserve judgment until we see Dayron Robles go in the 110m later on this evening... he's that good to watch.
8.05pm Sayers will start the final three rounds of the javelin in fourth, needing to beat the national record she set with her first through to get up near the medals. Throwing is looking very tough now, what with the puddles on the approach, and her fourth throw doesn't do it. Lining up on the track now are the final eight athletes in the 800m semis, with Britain's Michael Rimmer in lane eight.
8.10pm Rimmer sits at the back of the pack as though he's got something special planned for the finish. He doesn't though, and finishes sixth.
Another medal ceremony, this time for the 20km walk. Please stand for the national anthem of Russia. Meanwhile, the blue-shirted volunteer staff hustle around with more free rain-capes for everyone. Will Britain provide free rain capes for every journalist and spectator at 2012? How much does it even cost to do something like that?
8.15pm The chaps from L'Equipe conspicuously fail to stand for the anthem. Boo. Here's Goldie again, now on her fifth throw. She's not happy with herself, grimacing and bunching her fists after the throw. It was good - 65.05m - but not good enough.
8.20pmThe first heat of the 4x100m, featuring the United States 'reserve' quartet, which still features Tyson Gay and Darvis Patton (the other two are named Travis and Rodney - a fine foursome of first names). They have Nigeria inside them, and T&T outside them, but we're really all waiting to watch them get taken apart by Jamaica in the final so don't drop the baton in the heats again fellas.
Well guess what? They dropped the baton. Again. On the final changeover, between Patton and Gay. T&T won at a canter thanks to Richard Thompson's final leg.
8.25pm and the triple jumpers are being introduced. Triple jump just ever so slightly ludicrous isn't it? I like to think that all athletic events have their routes in ancient and natural activities, but actually, apart from maybe crossing a river there's not much to be said in that regard for triple jumping. More than race walking mind. Still, the first ever Olympic medal was given in triple jumping mind, to James Connolly, though the organisers actually changed it to a hop-hop-jump the night before the competition. Still, it's a serious pedigree. Mind you, they used to have the standing long jump and the tug of war too.
8.33pm Now it's Britain's turn in the 4x100, they're in lane five, inside Jamaica and outside France. All the noise is for the Chinese team in lane eight though. Honestly people, I wouldn't get your hopes up about that one. For all the paper around me, I don't have a teamsheet for this race, but Britain's team is Williamson, Edgar, Pickering and Devonish. The Jamaicans have Michael Frater and Asafa Powell on the straights. By the way, Nigeria also dropped the baton in that first heat, making Jamaica even more of a dead cert. Along as they don't dro... No, Jamiaca win with ease, Pickering powering Britain home in second place with 38.71.
Idowu has become such a serious athlete. The way in which he nailed his first qualifying jump was just stupendous. And he's done it again here. His first leap takes him to 17.51, which puts him straight into first place, and is actually better than anyone else in this field has jumped this season. Nelson Evora, reigning world champion, is his nearest competition, some twenty centimetres behind. And here's the evergreen Larry Achike, bounding out to a slightly lukewarm 16.74m. The javelin is over, with Goldie finishing fourth, a shame given she threw a PB in an Olympic final, and CZE's Barbora Spotakova in first with 71.42, pipping the Russian Maria Abakumova with her final throw.
8.45pm good grief this is relentless. There isn't an empty seat in the house, for those of you wandering. Except a few in the press tribune. The man from L'Equipe is having a very heated conversation with his editor on the phone. He smells awful. That said, I'm sure I'm not too fragrant myself. So, moving swiftly on, here's the Women's 4x100m. Britain (Kwakye, Douglas, Freeman and Ania) are in lane nine. This is brilliant. Britain finish second and qaulify behind Belgium, mainly because the USA drop the baton. Again. And again it's on the final changeover. This time, instead of moping about on the track the American anchor turned about, picked up the fallen baton, turned around again and raced to the finish, well back down the field. Already broken news that I somehow missed: Britain have been disqualified from the men's 4x100m, which rubs the smug grin off my face at least. I presume for running out of their lane, but I haven't heard for sure.
Ah, just when you think you've broken news it turns out you lot all know about it already. Crossed the line without the baton you say? Good grief. Well anyway. The triple jump has got interesting: Evora had taken the lead with 17.56m, and Idowu, feeling a little pressure, gets 17.31m with his second jump.
9pm, Idowu is now down in third place, with Cuba's Arnie Girat stealing second from him by a single centimetre. What a great final this is turning into. Here's Larry Achike, talking to himself at the start of his run. But it's a foul. The last chapter of the night's slapstick relay is ready to start now. Hmm, I wonder if Jamaica will win? Yes, yes they will. To the L'Equipe's immense disgust, their lot have dropped the baton.
9.07pm Well I don't know what you folk made of those relays from TV, but from where I was it was all thoroughly ridiculous: a total melee. Baffling.
9.15pm Evora has fouled his third jump, and here's Idowu, in all his sweatband bound glory. He needs to pick up six cm to take the lead, but really needs to push out past 17.70m to take control of things. Oh and he likes that! He likes that a lot. He pumps his fists at the crowd and shouts with delight. That's 17.62m for Idowu, and he's back in first with his best jump of the season yet.
Right, this is going to be great, I'm just sorry I can't bring you stride-by-stride. Jeremy Wariner v LaShawn Merritt v Michael Johnson's world record of 43.18. Unless Merritt runs a huge PB, Wariner should have this in his pocket. The question is, can he finally beat his mentor's best time? He's in lane seven. For us British, there's Martyn Rooney, fresh from a PB of 44.60 in the last round, pushing for a bronze.
Well, Wariner blew it, skinned on the second corner by Merritt, who has run a PB of 43.75. Rooney, who false started, finished sixth, and David Neville produced a spectacular head-first dive at the line to clinch third and a US 1-2-3.
Johnson still has one record then, very disappointing by Wariner, who finished a full second behind in second place, with 44.74, though the conditions mitigated against a really quick time. That said, only four men have ever gone faster over 400m than Merritt did, it just so happens that one of them was racing tonight. On the far side of the stadium Larry Achike is still plugging away. He got out to 17.17m with his third jump, which puts him sixth, but his next effort was a foul.
So, at 9.35pm we're in the fourth round of the triple jump, with Phillips Idowu leading by three cm from the Bahama's Leevan Sands. Next on track is the last big final of the night, the 110m hurdles. Not that I want to curse him as well, but he should really own this race. I guess the track conditions will make things a little tricky. He's the most aesthetically pleasing hurdler I've seen since Colin Jackson (who of course never had a good Olympics), a steady head and a straight torso. It's so satisfying when you get a sprint hurdler winning through his technique rather than just his pure speed. Ah Evora has taken the lead back in the triple jump! What a contest. He's gone out to 17.67cm, which, again, is five cm ahead of Idowu.
In the triple jump, the top four places are filled by two seasons bests, one personal best and one national record. Great stuff. Idowu, goes long on his latest jump, out near 17.60m, but up goes the red flag. And now the 110m...
9.50pm. Superb. Utterly superb. 12.93 from Robles, untroubled by any of his rivals. This guy is so good to watch. It helps that he looks like Avon Barksdale from The Wire of course. USA pick up silver and bronze.
9.55pm the decathlon 400m races aside, the triple jump now has the stadium to itself. Idowu has two jumps remaining, and is still in second place with 17.62, five cm behind Evora, who has just registered 17.24m with his fifth jump. Robles trots by in front of me, on a rather muted lap of honour.
Nope, Idowu's fifth is no good, he'll have to do it with his last jump if he's to do it all.
I'm handed another sheet, this one featuring flash quotes from the US relay team, both Patton and Gay are claiming individual responsibility for dropping the baton., like two men arguing over who should go through a door first. Just so you know, Brian Clay is leading the decathlon, with the great Roman Sebrle down in sixth. Such a shame Canvey Island's finest Dean Machine Macey didn't make it here to join them.
The Stadium is emptying quickly, and is now less than half full. The Chinese triple jumper didn't make it through to the final round of eight so... Anyway. Achike finishes with another foul and ends up in seventh place overall.
Idowu is now guaranteed silver but can he get that gold with his last jump...? He stands at the end of the runway, pours water on his head from a squeeze bottle, urges the crowd to clap, punches his fist into his palm and runs... and gets it totally wrong. He finishes second to Evora.
Well, thanks for your company all, I'm going to wrap this up now, go outside and smoke furiously. A little disappointing for Britain, Idowu is down in front of me now, looking disconsolate. He's being hugged by Darren Campbell. No doubt he'll feel better in the morning. Right, cheerio.
